Not What We Expected
by TenyumeKasumi
Summary: When they first heard they would be welcoming a new Tamayorihime, just what were the boys expecting? Slight OOC, borders on crack.


**For those expecting the new chapter of Chocolate Dash, please do be patient! It's in edit right now. Though I have to get dinner out of the way as well so you can expect it within a few hours. Thank you for your patience!**

**Note: **In this story, Shinji is included although it does not make chronological sense for him to be present. But it would feel odd with everyone except him here so I did it anyway. I guess this makes it AU-ish? But what the heck – this is what fanfiction is for! Fight on! Crystal Guy!

* * *

Suguru Oumi sipped at his steaming hot tea steadily, nestled comfortably in a Japanese-styled room which had its sliding paper doors open to welcome the crisp autumn air into the space along with a view of the immaculate garden outside. The breeze played with his long hair, tugging it gently this way and that as the man enjoyed the calm atmosphere. The breeze was cool, the tea was perfect and it was relaxing to settle down after a long day to watch the early-evening sky turn to dusk and the sun to take its rest only to promise a return the next day.

But of course, we all need just that little unnecessary bit of excitement to end the day.

"Oi! Oumi-san! Are you in?"

The overly-familiar voice of Mahiro Atori cut through the air, shattering the calm peace that was just there a moment ago. A pair of birds perched on a branch of the maple tree in the garden had been frightened and taken flight. Even the wind seemed to stop to herald the coming of the remaining four guardians.

Ah, school must have been just out then.

"Oumi- Hah! There you are! Why didn't you answer me?" the obnoxious purple-haired boy appeared from the behind the sliding shoji, walking along the engawa. Following closely behind him were an irritated Takuma, stoic Yuichi and a softly smiling Shinji who bowed and said "Good evening Oumi-san, I hope you are doing well."

Oumi returned the smile with one of his own "I'm doing very well Inukai-kun, thank you. And Atori-kun, perhaps you would consider announcing your presence a little more politely if you wish for people to acknowledge it." The boy did not take this comment lightly.

"Tch! What the hell, Oumi-san? Since when did you become my mot- "

"Mahiro, Oumi-san was only trying to-"

"Aw, shut your trap, Yuichi. Not you too, damn it! Whose side are you on?"

"Mahiro, that was uncalled fo-"

"RAAAAH! You trying to say I have no manners? TAKUMAAA! EAT THIS!"

Takuma sidestepped the punch effortlessly. "I hadn't even finished my sentence yet."

"That doesn't matter! I already knew what you were going to say before you even opened that know-it-all mouth of yours! Just – stand – still – and – let me – BUST IT IN!"

"A-anou, Mahiro-senpai… I don't think Takuma-senpai meant anything against yo- "

"Are you stupid, Shinji? It was obvious he was – HYAH! – going to –HAAAH! – say that I was a noisy hot-head who overreacts to everything – TAKE THIIIS!"

_But… That's exactly what you are… _were the thoughts of everyone else in the room.

Once Mahiro had been sufficiently calmed down and everyone was seated at the table with a steaming cup of green tea before them, did Takuma turn to Oumi and announced, "It's time. The new Tamayorihime is coming."

This news did not seem to surprise Oumi overly much, but his eyes shone in piqued interest. "Ah, I expected as much. When will she be arriving?"

"Tomorrow afternoon. Takuma's supposed to collect her at the bus stop." Yuichi provided as he absent-mindedly gazed out to the reddening sky as if in deep contemplation.

"Heh, the moment we've been training ourselves our whole lives for has finally arrived! Things are going to get more exciting around here! Aren't you guys excited? Huh? Come on, show some life here!"

Yuichi turned from his sky-viewing activity to give Mahiro a questioning look. Shinji just smiled sheepishly and Takuma rolled his eyes to the ceiling and muttered something no one could hear. Oumi answered with a grim smile, "I see your point Atori-kun. Hope however, that things need not get _too_ exciting."

Of course, if anything happened to the seal or Onikirimaru they would be heading for a good deal more excitement than any of them had bargained for.

Mahiro clicked his tongue impatiently. "Geez, must you guys all be such a bunch of wet blankets? I swear, just one of you is enough to put out a bonfire. Right, Shinji?" Shinji's only response to laugh awkwardly in an attempt to brush it off.

No one rebutted Mahiro's comment and there was a stretch of silence as everyone enjoyed their tea along with the sights and sounds of the falling dusk. Just as the first of the night night stars began twinkling into existence against the pink and purple backdrop of sky and cloud and the birds were finishing their last evening songs, Shinji broke the silence to ask, "Guys, what do you think the new Tamayorihime is like?"

Yuichi looked thoughtful at this. "Well, we know her name is Kasuga Tamaki and she's Baba-sama's granddaughter, but nothing else."

"Heh, if she's related to Baba-sama, she must have awesome powers!" Mahiro stated his opinion loudly, using hand gestures for emphasis.

"She probably has good leadership skills like Baba-sama." Takuma speculated, his hand on his chin – like it was when he was trying to solve a particularly difficult crossword puzzle.

Oumi smirked, a glint of uncharacteristic mischief present on his glasses. "Or maybe she isn't anything like Baba-sama. Just because one shares blood relations with another doesn't mean they have to be similar."

"Then maybe…" Yuichi said with a look of mounting dread on his face, "she's a fierce demon who beats people up for no reason and has a temper worse than Mahiro's?"

"Hey!" Mahiro snapped indignantly. "What the hell did that mean, Yuuichi? Besides, why are you taking Oumi-san's words at face value?"

"No," Takuma denied, ignoring Mahiro. "An heir of the Tamayorihime bloodline wouldn't be that plain. I still think she is a dignified individual who commands authority and respect." Insisted the redhead, eyes burning with the conviction of one who completely and utterly believed he was right.

"Or perhaps she has a regal bearing like a royal courtesan and carries herself with as much grace and beauty as an empress of old." interjected Oumi.

"No, she must be as fierce as a Spartan and her ever-present rage as terrible as a dragon's."

Almost everyone present gave Yuichi a weird look. The boy's amber eyes were looking slightly demented. Mahiro was oblivious.

"Nah, I bet she's like those super cool heroines in manga with a great body to match too!" he said enthusiastically, slamming his fists on the table as he got caught up in the fire of discussion.

"But if she's like heroines in manga, what if she's like Tsunade, that Hokage from Naruto? That ferocity…"

"Yuichi-senpai, your expectations are a bit far-fetched." commented Shinji good-naturedly.

"Well, maybe she'll have Tsunade's boobs." Mahiro allowed, eyes taking on a dream-like quality.

"Is that size even possible in reality?"

"Shut up, Takuma! And she'll have a pretty narrow waist too. And good hips! Heh, I bet her measurements will be 36-24-26!"

"And according to your fantasies senpai, legs like that American actress Marilyn Monroe?" asked Shinji innocently. Oumi cast Takuma a sharp look. The red haired boy answered with a shrug and raised both hands in front of him in denial. Oumi turned to give Yuichi the same treatment and got a similar response. They then knew it was Mahiro who had been… influencing Shinji. How else could someone so innocent have known about Marilyn Monroe's skirt scandal?

The fact that the three of them also knew about it was disregarded.

"WoooOOO, yeah! And I bet she'll have a perfectly rounded ass too- "

"Are we seriously discussing the new Tamayorihime's body?" Takuma interrupted with a tenor of incredulity in his voice and a light pink dusting his cheeks.

The eldest of them present shook his head in disapproval, long green hair following the movement. "When you grow older, you young adolescents will come to realise just how shallow these things are. No, she will be like a silently smiling angel, poise always perfect and smile always ready on her face. She will be an excellent cook and be a practitioner of the art ikebana. Her tenderness knows no boundaries and she will be soft-spoken. Her priorities will be first and foremost to her duties and- "

"A-anou, Oumi-san, isn't that… "

"… a Yamato Nadeshiko?" Takuma finished Shinji's question.

"It's a Yamato Nadeshiko." Yuichi confirmed.

The man grinned slightly. "Exactly."

"But they're almost non-existent in this era…"

"Yeah yeah, but that's just how boring Oumi-san is. Trust him to be old enough to have the hots for a girl as dull as that." Mahiro huffed, crossing his arms in front of his chest and turning his nose up at Oumi as if he was disgusted at the older man.

Takuma gave Mahiro a scandalised look. "Who said anything about having the hots for the Tamyorihime?"

"There's no way I'm liking a violent female sadist who is most likely the leader of some weird cult." Yuichi put down with as much finality and conviction as he could.

Shinji turned to face him, still wearing a soft smile. "Yuichi-senpai, the way you can say that with a straight face is kind of scary."

Oumi sighed "Yuichi-kun, I doubt she'll be anything like you seem to think so please don't jump to- "

"But what if she's like the female version of Hibari Kyouya?" the level of seriousness Yuichi was taking this delusion of his was almost funny. Oumi merely smiled and looked out towards the garden. "She will be far too pure and graceful to be anything as uncultured as Hibari Kyouya."

Somewhere, Hibari Kyouya sneezed.

Takuma sighed, "Do you seriously still think she's a Yamato Nadeshiko, Oumi-san? That is unlikely. I find it more probable that she is a modern female anti-hero who lives for justice and has an unbreakable code of honour, like a modern samurai."

"Idiot Takuma, you're obviously wrong! She'll be a hot blonde with such an amazing figure that the guys at Playboy will be begging for her picture!" This statement later led to a scandal of mysterious Playboy magazines found in the spare room that nobody claimed ownership of, but that's another story.

"A deranged and psychotic cult leader."

"The last female samurai in Japan!"

Oumi smiled at their antics as they continued to bicker among themselves. Then he turned to his left to the only other one who had not joined in and had said little throughout the whole debate.

"What about you, Inukai-kun? What do you think our Tamayorihime is like?"

Shinji jumped a little at being addressed so abruptly and nearly choked on his tea. Coughing, he looked up to see that everyone in the room was now silent and staring at him, waiting for his response. Even the crickets outside seemed quiet.

He cleared his throat a little before answered. "Er, w-well…" His eyes fell to the table to inspect wood grain. The stares were rather unnerving. "I… I don't want to pass judgement on someone I haven't met yet, but I think she'll be nice and polite. Maybe a little clumsy and a bit slow at times but a kind person with a gentle heart."

The room was still quiet when he finished, his cheeks and ears beginning to take on a pinkish tinge. It was a few seconds before Mahiro and Takuma reacted.

"Seriously, Shinji? Are your standards and imagination that low? Che!" Mahiro clicked his tongue and shook his head in disapproval.

"Well, it is Shinji after all…" sighed Takuma.

"Such plainness is unfitting for a Tamayorihime." Shinji looked at Yuichi in disbelief. Even Yuichi-senpai…?

Oumi laughed good-naturedly. "All right, all right, that's quite enough now. If we didn't stop here, this shallow discussion would continue until dawn and we would have all lost quite a bit of sleep. Let's all head off to bed now."

It was with much grumbling and fussing that all five of them finally were in bed, though a little late and with more grumbling that Yuichi had used up all the toothpaste, but they were in bed nonetheless.

* * *

Shinji felt an impact on his back as he walked up the stairs towards the school rooftop for lunch. A feminine squeak of surprise told him it was probably a female schoolmate who had accidentally bumped into him. Quickly turning around, he managed to save her from falling down the stairs and possibly breaking a few bones.

"Er, are you all right?" he asked awkwardly, his voice expressing his concern for the girl in his arms. She was pretty but not overly so; long brown hair fell to her waist and warm honeyed eyes stared up at him as if in shock. It took another second for Shinji to realise their proximity, their bodies were less than a foot away from each other. He forced down a blush – it had been a long time since he had gotten this close to a girl. "Er, do you mind letting go?" he asked, trying to be as courteous as he could yet at the same time hoping he was not coming off as offensive.

She blinked, seeming to snap out of whatever thoughts she had been having. Another flustered gasp and she scrambled out of his hold, stumbling and nearly tripping over again in the process. "I'm really sorry!" she said earnestly as she faced him properly and regained her footing. A thought struck Shinji then when he was suddenly reminded of the previous night's interesting conversation.

"Er," he began shyly, "are you, by any chance, Kasuga Tamaki-senpai?"

Her flustered look changed to one of mystification. "Huh? How did you know my… " Then an expression of belated realisation crossed her features. "That strange power you used – are you the fifth guardian?"

Shinji's face melted into a smile. "Yes, I'm Shinji Inukai, a first year." He tilted his head at her slightly. "You must be the Tamayorihime. I'm glad, you're just like I expected."

* * *

**A/N: **Ah, finally, a Hiiro no Kakera category! It was about time. ^^ My first Hiiro no Kakera fic and Oumi is already a troll. xD

Really, it's all my friend's fault that I got into watching it. But if it wasn't for her, I would never have discovered the wonder that is Hakuouki either. I just LOVE that franchise! :D In fact, I have several fics planned for that so Hakuouki fans, I hope you will be interested in them! I promise to do my best! :D

Also, I would like to write more Hiiro no Kakera fics in the future (although it has a sadly disappointing lack of character development and plot logic). I was thinking of a Takuma x Tamaki but maybe I could expand on that Playboy magazine scandal thing. xD What do you think?

Bear in mind though, my exams are around the corner so it may be quite a while before I can produce anything new. But any and all feedback/comment/opinions are highly welcome!

Signing off,

Kasumi.


End file.
